The reference in this specification to any prior publication (or information derived from it), or to any matter which is known, is not, and should not be taken as an acknowledgment or admission or any form of suggestion that the prior publication (or information derived from it) or known matter forms part of the common general knowledge in the field of endeavour to which this specification relates.
The reprographic device (photocopiers, scanners, digital copiers, etc.) has provided a convenient means for creating reproductions of hardcopy documents but has also led to the reproduction of materials that are either prohibited from copying or must be copied in a controlled manner, for example, material subject to copyright. Generally, reprographics devices do not have in-built functionality for calculating royalties to be paid to copyright owners when a copyright document is reproduced.
One option for organisations to eliminate their legal liability, and ensure compliance with copyright requirements, is to obtain a blanket license from a Copyright Agent (typically a not-for-profit, Government-owned organisation who ensures that the royalties are paid to the copyright owners). Such a license grants the licensee the permission to create reproductions under certain regulations in return for a fee. The fee is calculated based on an audit which takes a sample of locations over a specified period in order to estimate the likely usage over the entire contract period. This is done primarily because it would be far too expensive and resource intensive to audit the entire period. However, this still requires the use of manual procedures to ensure copyright compliance.
The terms of the license are often complex and contain a number of compliance rules. A common example of a compliance rule is the copy limit restriction that applies to a copyright document. Under this rule, a user may only reproduce up to a fixed percentage or portion of the document.
One approach to tracking copyright includes augmenting the existing device with additional hardware that has the ability to capture and store bibliographical information and an associated counter for tracking the number of reproductions made. However, this method does not process the bibliographical information immediately at the device to retrieve copyright rules for the material to be reproduced or perform any verification on the copy. Consequently, the user is not notified of any potential breach of copyright before the reproduction is made. There is no intermediate step for the user to review, approve and receive notifications of potential copyright breach so that the job may be modified or cancelled. Thus, the user must ensure copyright compliance before making the reproduction which may be time-consuming.
Another approach is to notify a central facility of an intention to copy documents, so that the facility can pre-approve the copying, scan and store the copyright materials. The disadvantage of this technique is that it introduces a significant time delay into the process. Thus, for example, a user may scan a document, seek approval and then print once approval is provided. However, under this scenario, the user is not given the opportunity to correct any errors at the point of scanning, for instance deleting a scan or scanning additional pages. Given an error notification from the approver of copyright compliance, the user must then return to the device, re-scan and re-submit the job.
Hence, there is a need for a simple method for extending the functionality of a reprographics device to ensure compliance with copyright.
Multi-function print devices (MFDs) are devices that integrate a number of hard-copy document handling functions, such as facsimile transceiver, scanner, copier and printer, in a single device. MFDs have become commonplace in the modern office environment and find particular application in the so-called “home office” where the need for each function often exists but the workload for each function does not justify a stand-alone or dedicated device.
With the recent advancements in reprographic devices, such as MFDs, it is possible to deploy and run complex applications on the device. Network connectivity is also a common feature of MFDs. Such devices include a touch panel which can render graphics such as dialog boxes, buttons, JPEG images, and text fields for input. It is also possible to attach and interface with USB devices (e.g. card readers, barcode readers) to extend the functionality of the MFD (or this can be built-in to the hardware). This is generally a better option than adding hardware as it is cheaper and also facilitates customization.